Behind Closed Doors
by Shinisin
Summary: Not your usual school-fic. The gang are ordinary people, but they keep their usual lives. *WARNING: Child Abuse*
1. Default Chapter

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**Behind Closed Doors**

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This is a DBZ fic, but it takes place in an A/U where most of the Z warriors are in high school. This is not a fic about their adventures there either, but it takes place during that time of their lives. Some of the characters may be OOC but IC for the situations that I have evilly dumped them in.

**Rated: PG13/R, due to violent child abuse and graphic violence**

**Disclaimer: I don't own diddly-sqwat, godditt?**

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Raucous noise coming from the classroom was the first thing that should have warned any visitors that they shouldn't go into that classroom. The second was the up-turned tables and chairs inside it.

A pretty girl with aqua hair, big blue eyes, an almost perfect figure and a look of amused intelligence leaned into a larger, dark haired boy. He had black hair, flat and unruly, dark mischievous looking eyes, a big grin and a crossed scar marring stunning good looks, at the same time lending him a buccaneering air which he pulled off very well. From the way he wrapped a brawny arm around the girl's shoulders, causing her to sigh happily and lean her head on his arm, you could tell that they were a couple.

A smaller boy with his head shaved laughed loudly, shouting encouragement to his best friend from time to time. He had an even wider grin on him than the other boy, and he also had an open and honest look about him. He was less well built than the scarred kid, but he wasn't fat. He had a tattoo of six dots adorning his forehead, the sign of his religion.

The objects of the words of encouragement and amused looks were another black haired boy, yelling apologies over his shoulder while simultaneously jumping furniture, and another girl pursuing him with an unpleasantly thick textbook. The boys black hair sprung up in every which way, more unruly than the first boys. He, too, had dark eyes, which were normally laughing and widely innocent, but had a panicked gleam in them now. The source of the tall, muscled man's apparent terror was a vicious looking woman with glossy black hair, brandishing aforementioned textbook with ease. Her brown eyes glittered with poorly suppressed anger.

"**_Goku! Get back here now!!!" she screamed._**

"Chichi, I'm sorry, I didn't know those cookies were for oomph" Goku, trying to apologise, tripped over a table. Chichi disappeared behind it followed by a 'whumph' noise.

"Goku? Are you okay?" The bald kid, Krillin, cautiously approached the now silent table. Chichi popped up, reasonably calm now, and walked away, dusting her hands. Looking behind the table, Krillin saw Goku rubbing his head ruefully, but grinning. Seeing his friend's quizzical expression, Goku explained. "Good cookies."

Krillin sighed, shaking his head, and then looked over to where Bulma and Yamcha, the girl and the guy, were kissing.

He grinned and yelled, "Hey! You two! Get a room.

They either didn't hear him, or ignored him, as the battle of the tongues raged on.

Chichi took a seat, just as their teacher came in.

"Ah. The bell has gone and as usual Miss Chichi is the only one sitting down."

As Chichi grinned smugly the others picked up their seats and sat down. Their teacher, Mr. Zarbon, began to do the register. As he got to the last name, he stopped and looked up.

"Vegeta?"

The seat in the back right corner was, as usual, empty. Zarbon began to mark the missing student absent when the door slammed backwards and bounced off the wall into the outstretched palm of the previously absent student.

"Sorry I'm late." He muttered as he stalked to his seat at the back of the class.

"Vegeta, can you please refrain from kicking the doors open. And would Miss Bulma kindly detach herself from the person sitting next to her? Thank you."

The recently entered Vegeta leaned back on his chair and again muttered. "Yeah, whatever."

Bulma, who had taken the 'frightening' opportunity for close bodily contact with her boyfriend sat back down in her seat.

The new kid was short, but was still taller than Krillin. He had a flame of red-black upswept hair and an almost permanent scowl, as well as tormented black eyes that seemed to bite through you. He was silent, moody and when he did talk he was always angry. He was always late to school, but he did normally get there.

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As the day went on, and Zarbon attempted to teach, the students all did the work to the best of their ability, unless they decided that they couldn't be bothered.

Soon, the bell went for lunch, and everyone had to go outside onto the playground, as the school operated a 'closed school' policy.

The whole class normally hung out together, with the exception of Vegeta, who hung out with some of the older boys. Although he was at least a year or two younger than they were, they followed him like sheep. It was something about the way he wouldn't hesitate to beat someone till they were unconscious, simply because they irritated him. One of them was actually Goku's bigger brother Radditz; a brawny individual with masses and masses of long black hair that spiked it's way down to his knees, and a stern and commanding face. Nappa was another, a hulking giant of a guy, who was old enough to drive, but stupid enough to actually believe that money grew on trees like leaves, because they were both green. They were second to Vegeta, put there by self-appointment and used by Vegeta, who really couldn't care less. They, in turn, bullied and beat on the other kids, except, for some reason, those in Vegeta's own class.

Bulma and Yamcha took advantage of these breaks for longer snogging sessions, each so enwrapped in each other that they would forget to eat. Chichi went all puppy-eyed when she saw the love that burned between them, and then instantly berated Goku for not kissing her all day, as they did. Goku would smile sweetly, kiss her cheek and remind her that they were both so secure with each other that they didn't need to kiss each other to show their love. They could feel it emanate from each other.Unfortunately, just as Chichi was getting ready to kiss Goku to death, he turned around and began eating his lunch, leaving her to scowl at the back of his head.

Krillin tried to get at least some sort of date from the girl he fancied at the moment... a red headed bombshell... but he was having no luck so far. He sat and told all of his girl trouble to his best friend instead.

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As soon as it had started, the bell went signalling a return to class. After the day had finished, the gang split up. Yamcha walked Bulma home, promising to meet up at Goku's house later, Krillin walked away with Goku and Chichi linking arms in front of him, all going to Goku's house to meet up and go out later.

Nappa had detention and stayed behind, while Radditz hung out with his latest flame before walking home, stopping off at the shop on his way. Vegeta also trudged his way home, keeping a quick steady pace. He didn't want to be late again.

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Krillin sat on Goku's bed, talking about where they were all going to go that night. Chichi sat on Goku's lap, Goku wrapping his arms around her possessively and occasionally kissing the side of her neck. They had just decided to go see the latest movie, when the house shook as a door slammed and heavy footsteps thundered up the stairs.

They looked up and Radditz burst into the room, looking around.

"Have you seen my wallet anywhere?" he asked Goku.

Goku also looked around, then rummaged in a shoebox on top of his dresser, dislodging Chichi from his lap.

"I think I put it in here after you lent it to me..." He mumbled.

Radditz tapped his foot on the ground and looked at his watch.

"Can you have to hurry up? I told Candy I'd meet her five minutes ago and then I have to go meet up with Vegeta."

Krillin raised an eyebrow. "Why are you meeting up with him?"

Radditz scowled. "I have to be there. We're going to fight some rival gang."

Krillin raised both eyebrows. "You have a _gang???"_

"Yeeeees." Radditz drawled as if to a very dumb child. "We have a gang. And we have to show this other gang that we can keep our territory."

Before Krillin could ask anything else, Goku threw Radditz his wallet. "Here ya go."

Radditz grabbed it and leapt down stairs, before banging the door shut.

"What was all that about?" Krillin asked. "What gang?"

Goku sighed and sat back down with Chichi. "Radditz hangs out with Vegeta and Nappa and that lot. They, apparently, have some kind of gang, and they, well, _rule a little bit of the town. I think there's is the block near the cinema. Anyway, they just get into trouble and generally create a bit of noise down there."_

"Isn't that dangerous? Aren't your parents worried?" Chichi questioned.

Goku smiled and kissed her hand. "The only thing they do is get into fights, and then they only get punched a bit. My mum and dad are kinda angry with Radditz about it all, but they decided that as long as he still get's his grades-and he does for some reason- he can do what he wants, as long as it isn't illegal."

"Have you ever gone with him?"

Goku laughed. "No. Don't worry. I don't want to mix with that lot. Radditz only does it for the power. That and he's scared of Vegeta."

"Is that Vegeta as in _our Vegeta at school?" Krillin asked._

Goku shrugged. "I guess."

"But he's about half the size of Radditz. Why do they follow him around like that?"

Chichi sighed. "Are you only just asking that now? He _always follows Vegeta around."_

"Yeah. I never really took any notice of it before. Why does he?"

Goku fielded this one. "Apparently Vegeta went ape on some poor kid at school and knocked him out because this kid called him a coward. Even though this kid was twice his build. I don't know how he managed it, but Radditz is scared of him, and so is that big guy in the upper class. What's his name? Nappa. So they can control everyone, and only have to listen to Vegeta. Most people are scared of him"

"Okay," Krillin said slowly. "Then how come I haven't heard about this before now?"

"Vegeta doesn't want anyone in his class to get roughed up. It causes too much trouble. Even though there are lots of kids getting beaten up out on the playground, as long as no one is brave enough or dumb enough to point the finger at him, he stays out of the heat. He figures that if someone in his class gets beat up, they'll know it was him and have no problems telling as they know him better."

Before anything else could be said, the doorbell rang. "That'll be Bulma and Yamcha."

"Let's go. The picture starts in about half an hour."

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They walked home chatting in the cold darkness and laughing over the movie. It had been a good funny one and they all felt that it didn't deserve the poor rating it had gotten. Just as they turned the corner, they realised that they were lost.

"How did we get here? Where _is here?" Bulma wailed._

"That's not gonna be you're biggest worry soon, babe." a gritty voice came from the corner. They all gasped, and Yamcha and Goku stood protectively in front of their respective girlfriends. Krillin, shivering in fear, also stood at the front, bravely protecting the girls. Just as soon as a shadowy looking figure stepped forward with a knuckle-duster, a foot came flying out of nowhere and hit him in the head, knocking him down to the ground where he lay without moving.

"_Baka!" a scornful voice hissed._

The little group looked shocked as none other than the short Vegeta stepped away from the body, belatedly followed by Nappa and Radditz.

"Vegeta." Nappa panted. "Is he...?"

Vegeta rounded on the big guy. "You _idiot! You were supposed to put him out of action." He hissed, glaring balefully at the cowering giant._

"Goku?" Radditz queried. "What are you doing here?"

"Radditz? We-we went to see a movie and then-" Goku waved his hands around vaguely to indicate the situation.

Vegeta grinned at Nappa, a chilling expression, and then he kicked him in the shin. The giant went down, clutching his leg in agony. Vegeta snickered.

"Hey, you big bully!"

Vegeta turned around slowly, glowering. Bulma stood there, hands on hips, eyes alight, Yamcha tugging desperately on her waist for her to come back.

"There was no need for that."

Vegeta leaned against the wall, hugging himself tightly and smirked. "What are you going to do about it? We're not at school anymore."

Bulma 'eeped' and hid behind Yamcha, who looked relieved. Vegeta looked down at his watch and went slightly pale. "I'm gonna be late." He murmured.

"Radditz, make sure that Nappa doesn't get himself killed trying to get home. I'll see you tomorrow."

Without a word to the others, he turned round and was gone.

Goku held onto the shivering Chichi, Krillin collapsed, relieved, and Yamcha comforted Bulma.

Radditz nodded to Nappa then turned to the gang. "Come on then." he said to them. "I'd better get you home, or dad'll have my head."

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The next day at school went as normal. Bulma and Yamcha were still kissing in the corner, and Krillin was playing Gin with Goku and Chichi. Zarbon came in and they all sat down. Then, also as usual, Vegeta appeared late again.

As he entered and sat down everyone noticed that he had a livid bruise across his jaw, and a fresh but not bleeding cut above his left eye. Zarbon looked at him.

"What happened to you?" he asked.

"I got into a fight last night. Nothing big." he replied.

"Well, although I don't approve of fighting, it didn't happen on school grounds so I can't do anything. But if I catch you fighting here, I have to call your dad, okay?"

Vegeta stiffened slightly. A flash of fear passed through his ebony eyes. "Yessir." he said quietly.

"Okay then."

Class continued as normal, but Bulma, being the most perceptive one, and having seen Vegeta's face close up, remembered that he hadn't looked like that last night after the fight. Vegeta was lying.

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Later, at break, Bulma told the rest of the gang.

"You know last night, when I told that bully to stop kicking Nappa? Well, I got a pretty good look at his face, and I didn't see a bruise, or a cut."

"Yeah," said Krillin. "And he said he had to go home straight away."

Chichi interrupted. "Why do we even care?" she asked. "It's not as if we're his best friends."

"Yeah," Yamcha said. "But Chichi, if Bulma thinks there's something wrong here there probably is. And everything we know makes this whole thing seem very suspicious to me."

"Besides Chi, if it was someone else in trouble, wouldn't you want to help?" this was Goku.

"I suppose," Chichi admitted. "Not even that miserable louse deserves to get beat up like that. Especially if he won't say how."

"And he's a pretty shy guy if you know him."

"Radditz?"

Radditz had come up from behind them and startled them. "What do you know about it?"

Radditz frowned. "Yesterday Vegeta should have got home safely. His house in the middle of our territory, and he could handle himself if anyone tried to ambush him."

"Do you think he could've fallen and doesn't want to tell anyone?" Krillin asked.

"Maybe, he is a really proud guy." Radditz said. "But then, it doesn't seem likely. He's not really the falling over type."

Before the conversation could be carried on, a chant reached their ears.

"_Fight, fight, fight, fight, fight, fight, fight, fight, fight, fight...."_

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"Please don't."

"I'm sorry Vegeta, but I told you, anymore fighting and I'll have to call your parents."

"Please, Mr. Zarbon, _please don't call him. Please? You can give me detention instead."_

Zarbon looked down at the begging boy. "I'm sorry Vegeta, but detention doesn't seem to work. Now we'll just have a chat to your parents."

"You can't." Vegeta blurted out. "My-my dad won't come. He hates parent-teacher stuff."

"Well, then we'll talk over the phone. Don't worry. I'm sure we can get to the root of this problem."

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Vegeta caught up with Radditz as he was walking home with Goku and Chichi.

"Radditz!"

"Oh, hey Vegeta. What's up?"

"Ummm, I wanted to know if I could stay at yours for a bit? Zarbon called my dad about the fight, and he's not going to be happy with me. It's too cold to stay outside and I'd rather go home than stay at Nappa's."

Radditz looked a little surprised at the desperation in Vegeta's voice, the look in his eyes that said 'you are my last hope'. Vegeta wasn't pleading, but he knew him well enough to tell when he wasn't joking around.

"Well, mum and dad aren't gonna be around. I suppose you can stay."

"Thanks." Vegeta said, another surprise. "I owe you one."

Goku was surprised when Radditz told them that Vegeta was going to be staying at theirs for a bit, but he accepted it. Chichi stayed away from Vegeta and left all the talking to Goku and Radditz.

"So Vegeta," Goku started. "How's your face. Does it hurt?"

Vegeta looked cagey. "It's alright." he said, unconsciously lifting a hand to trace his bruised jawbone.

"How did you get that?"

"I told you, I got into a fight." Vegeta growled.

"When was that though? You seemed fine when we saw you last night."

Vegeta's hands clenched into fists. "It doesn't matter." he hissed, apparently trying to control his temper.

Radditz rescued Goku. "So why did you hit that guy today?"

Vegeta relaxed slightly. "He said that I was getting slow, and that if I could get hit like this on my own turf, he shouldn't have a problem taking it from me. I had to show him he was wrong." He grinned at his, and Chichi felt scared. How could someone actually feel glad at having hurt someone else? Vegeta looked positively feral.

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When they got home, Goku and Chichi went to his room, and Vegeta followed Radditz to his. They played video games until late into the night. Chichi was staying over, and was wondering when Vegeta would have to go home so that she could cuddle with Goku, who seemed reluctant to do that with Vegeta here.

The phone rang, so Goku hopped down and answered it.

"Hello?"

The voice at the other end could only be described as slimy.

"Hi. Is Vegeta there?"

"Umm, yeah. Are you his dad?"

The voice snickered. "Yes I am. Can I talk to him?"

"Sure thing." Goku leaned away from the phone and yelled. "VEGETA!!! PHONE!!!" Then he turned back to the phone.

"Don't be too hard on him for fighting, he was just defending his honour."

The voice at the other end grew hard. "Oh, don't worry. I won't be _too hard on him."_

Vegeta reached the phone, giving a questioning look to Goku as he took it. *_Your dad* Goku mouthed, and then watched interested as the colour drained from Vegeta's face, making the livid blue and purple bruise stand out even more._

"Dad." He said.

Goku listened but couldn't hear anything.

"Yeah, I know, but... Okay. Okay. I'm sorry. I will."

He flinched slightly. 

"Alright then. Yeah I will. Okay."

He put the phone down and then turned to Goku.

"I have to go. Thanks for... you know."

"That's okay." Said Goku, serious. "Are you alright getting home?"

"Yeah, yeah. I'll walk. It's not far."

"If your sure." said Goku.

"Yeah."

"Well then, night."

"Night."

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Vegeta wasn't in school at all the next day. Goku had told the guys what had happened, and about the phone-call. They were still puzzled. Bulma was annoyed as she had been assigned as his partner in English, and he wasn't there to help.

She hoped that he would be in tomorrow, because if she didn't get a good grade here, she would fail English. 

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The day after that, Vegeta came into school. He had the two-day old bruise, now a paler colour still across his cheek, and the healing cut, but he also sported a black eye, a bruise on the other cheek, and a larger ugly gash that cut across the bruised eye and ran up into his hairline. He limped to his seat and sat down painfully.

"Fell over." he said, in reply to Zarbon's questioning glance.

Bulma and Yamcha were also having problems. She had caught him with another girl the other day, and after questioning her, had discovered that she thought she was his only girlfriend.

They had had a fight and were now sitting away from each other.

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In the playground, Vegeta sat against a wall on his own, after having sent his two 'bodyguards' away. He drew his legs up close to his body, rested his crossed arms on them and held his head. He sighed into them and sat there, trying to forget where he was, who he was. 

He was doing a good job of it, because Bulma had yelled and screamed to get his attention, and eventually resorted to actually _touching the bully. She was surprised at his reaction. He flinched and leaned away from her hand, uncurling from the ball that he was in, and his heart rate accelerated. He looked up, eyes wide, before he saw who it was and got control of his face again, shutting himself off into his usual scowl._

"What the HFIL do you want?" he snapped at her.

"Are you alright?" Bulma, concerned, ignored his tone.

"Yeah. I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?"

She scanned his face, seeing closer the swollen black eye, the angry-looking livid bruise that spanned the other jaw bone and the long cut which, she saw from the blood matted hair, went some way up into his hairline.

"Why didn't you wash that out?" she queried.

"None of your business." He growled, standing up.

*_Note to self: Blue hair is taller than me. *_

Bulma put her hands on her hips, angry.

"Well excuuuuu-se me for caring buddy, but we have to do this English assignment, and I would rather do it with a partner who isn't concussed."

He looked at her confused. "How did you know that?"

"Know what?"

"That I had a concussion. Who you been talking to?" he unconsciously put a hand to his head.

"Is that where you were yesterday then? In hospital?" Bulma's anger was gone in her curiosity.

_"WHO SAID I WAS IN HOSPITAL?!?!?!" Vegeta was getting agitated._

Radditz and Nappa came up to her, having noticed this little facedown. Radditz reached her first.

"Is she bothering you Vegeta?" he asked.

"HFIL, YES." He yelled.

"Come on, Bulma." Radditz took her arm. "Leave him alone, he's in a bit of a mood today." he whispered in her ear.

Bulma looked back to see Vegeta cussing up at Nappa, who stood there looking sheepish.

"I just wanted to know how he was." she complained. "He didn't need to blow up at me like that. We have to do English together."

"It's alright." he reassured her. "I'll ask him to be nice to you for English."

The bell went.

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"For the benefit of those of us who weren't here yesterday." Zarbon looked meaningfully at Vegeta, who just snorted and looked away. "I'll re-explain your English assignment. You have to write a detailed report of one family member from your other partner's family. It can be anyone as long as they're direct relatives. This means fathers, mothers, step-fathers/mothers, siblings, aunts, uncles, and first cousins. Grandparents as well. Now, are there any questions? Yamcha?"

"How do we get the information we need?"

"Well, opinions from other family members are welcome. Your partner's opinion is important; they must also provide you with the right amount of info. Anything the person you are writing about says to you can be included, but I don't want _any interviews. Okay? Any more questions?"_

Bulma had her hand up. "Will we have to go to each other's houses?"

"You have to meet the person, yes. Vegeta?"

"I'm not doing it."

Zarbon looked at him. "It's not a multiple choice task Vegeta. You have to do this, it's a large part of your exam grade."

"Well, then I'll fail it."

"Oh no you don't." that was Bulma.

"Look mister, this may not be a big deal to you, but I have expectations. I have to get a decent grade in this, and if I don't, I'll blame you for the rest of your life."

"She's right Vegeta." Zarbon told him.

"There is no way she's doing a paper on my 'guardian' okay???" Vegeta stood up and yelled.

The whole class went silent.

"Look," Zarbon sighed. "If you want, she can do one on your _real dad. Would that be better?"_

Vegeta looked round, at all the other students, at Zarbon and at Bulma. She looked pleadingly at him and mouthed, *_pleeease?*_

He made a decision.

"I 'spose." he muttered.

"Good."

As they went back to their work Vegeta felt a great sense of misery. *_ I really wish I didn't have to do this* he thought, and then looked across at his partner, who was busily scribbling notes._

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As the days went on, Vegeta hung around at Bulma's house. He was writing his paper on her dad, who wasn't the most exciting of people, but who was one of the world's greatest geniuses, having invented the revolutionary and space saving capsule. The doctor had biographies all over the Internet, and they were allowed to use any articles about any of the members of family they were writing about. This might even be Vegeta's first 'A', especially as Bulma kept pressuring him to hurry up and finish it.

He had been spending a lot of time at her place, talking to her mother and some of the employees to find out the real deal about Dr. Briefs. Some of the information that he found on the 'Net wasn't accurate, but he knew he could rely on the opinions of the others and his essay was soon near completion.

While he had had to associate with Bulma he had gotten to know her a bit better, and she him. He found her to be flighty and sometimes superficial, while at the same time she was fiery-tempered, determined and almost always up for a laugh. She had inherited her father's brains, and while Vegeta didn't want to admit attraction to her, he did have to say that she was a really beautiful girl. Although she did have a mouth on her.

Bulma found Vegeta to be a quiet guy, shy like Radditz had said. This came as a surprise to her at first, but she eventually got used to the way that he would avoid 

talking to anyone unless he absolutely had to. He was extremely proud and strong-willed. He liked to bate her to arguments, so she found that he had a wit almost as quick as her own, and while he was abrasive and arrogant, she saw something inside him that resembled vulnerability. He hid it well under a facade of bravado, but it was there, present but deeply buried. She wondered why someone as intimidating as Vegeta would feel vulnerable, but then, he was only human and everyone had some weaknesses.

The problems started when it was time for Bulma to begin her essay on Vegeta's dad. They had arranged to meet up in front of the school. Vegeta didn't turn up. She cornered him at school the day after and forced him to tell her about his dad so she could start her essay. He took her to the graveyard.

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They looked down at the ordinary grey gravestone, half covered with ivy and vines, and choked at the bottom with long grass.

**_'Here rests Vegeta, brave protector and loved father and brother.'_**

Bulma looked solemnly at Vegeta who was lost in his own thoughts. They wandered over to sit on the bench near the path and she waited until he was ready to start talking. He began, looking off into the distance, to a place only in his head.

Vegeta's dad had been left to raise the baby after his wife died a few days after he was born. Vegeta didn't know why she had died, he had never been told. His dad was an important person high in the chain of command in the army. He was away for long periods of time, so Vegeta would stay on his own at home where his uncle would occasionally look in on him. His dad was a proud man, arrogant as Vegeta was now, and he didn't like to see any weaknesses in his son. Vegeta, as a result, had grown quickly into a very mature child for his age. He had learned self-defence from his dad, who was also very fit, mentally and physically, and who had very few close friends, mainly in the army-base where he worked. He was ambitious, dedicated and tactically brilliant. Vegeta had been six when his dad had been shot by an angry soldier while at work. It was a freak incident, but it left a very angry little boy behind.

"I was left in the care of my uncle. And that's really all I can tell you."

Bulma, who had been taking notes, looked up.

"Isn't there anything else you can give me Vegeta?" She begged. "This isn't going to be a very good essay, and I'll get a bad mark."

Vegeta was half-tempted to tell her to mind her own business, but then she had helped him with his assignment as much as possible, so he supposed he could do this for her. She was hoping for a good grade here after all. And she hadn't been as snappy as she appeared.

He sighed.

"I s'pose there's a few other things I could show you." he said. "But they're at my place."

"Oh thank you!" Bulma cried, spontaneously hugging him round the neck. Or trying to at least.

Vegeta saw her leap at him, and automatically put up an elbow to block, leaning back as he did. Bulma hit his arm and went down sharply.

"What was that for?" she asked, ruefully rubbing her butt.

"Sorry, force of habit." Vegeta explained. He helped her up.

They stood there, her hands in his, looking at each other. The world around them seemed to stop, the sky was lit in bold pinks and reds backed by delicate and deep violet. They stepped closer...

Vegeta froze and pulled away. "We'd better get going." he said. "We can't be late."

Bulma, confused, picked up her notes and followed him out of the cemetery.

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They walked through the rapidly darkening alleys until they came to a house that looked the same as any of the other houses on the block. Vegeta seemed nervous, glancing at his watch every now and then and fidgeting in a way that was quite unlike him.

Bulma looked at him quizzically and put her hand on his arm.

"Are you okay?"

He jumped and turned to her.

"Yeah. Yeah I'm fine. I'll just go get the stuff, okay?"

He jumped inside and left her standing on the step, moving from foot to foot, clutching her notes to her. She'd better start walking back quick, or she'd have to call home, and she really didn't want to drag her parents out. She heard murmuring voices on the other side of the door, one of them was Vegeta's and one she didn't recognise. Probably his uncle. She waited, listening.

The deeper voice sounded muggy and angry. It was harsher and louder than the lighter voice of Vegeta, who sounded apologetic and stammering. She heard some kind of heavy noise and then there was a stretch of silence before some more angry muttering.

She heard footsteps and the door swung open. Vegeta looked out and handed her a box. His nose was bleeding and his lip was cut.

"You can look through these." he said. "'Night."

He began to close the door and Bulma put her hand out.

"Wait. What happened?"

"Oh." he said, touching his lip. "The box was on a high shelf and it fell on me. Bye"

Bulma was faced with a shut door and a sense that something wasn't right here at all. However, she couldn't do anything just because things looked suspicious. She sighed, turned and walked home.

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When she got home, Bulma opened the metal box and looked at a large amount of letters with some clippings and things.

There were a few old medals that she looked at, noted down, and then carried on looking. She read the letters, all of them from Vegeta's dad to his son. They were mainly about how his day went, asking things about school and life at home, telling Vegeta to be strong and wait for him to come home. They ended saying how much his dad missed him and that he'd be back soon. There were some rough letters from Vegeta to his dad, some photographs and then some newspaper clippings. There were a couple that had only a small box in them, ringed with a red pen, about a new award won, and other such achievements, but they were mostly about the death of Vegeta by some freak accident, obituaries and details of why it happened. Bulma got as much information as possible, wanting to edit it as much as she could so that all the emphasis wasn't on Vegeta's dad's death, and was just closing the box when something else caught her eye.

It was a small notebook, slim and blue like the ones they gave out at school to list spellings in. She opened it and read the first page, written in block handwriting that had the edge of childishness in it, spattered with spelling mistakes.

'Ths Is Vegetas DaIry. HANdS OF OR ELS!!!'

It was underlined several times in red ink.

She grinned at the childishness of it, unexpected in a kid like Vegeta. She read through it, thought there was nothing really interesting there. Just what he'd done that day, that he missed his dad, what he'd had for dinner. The things he had learned at school. Funnily enough there was nothing really in there about any fights he had gotten into. She thought he may have just left them out, but they were mentioned if they had occurred. Some he had started, some he hadn't, but there were only a few noted.

As she read on, she got to a point where the entries petered out. Then, after about three weeks they started up again. She noticed that this was about the time that Vegeta's dad had died. His writing had now become more precise and the spelling and grammar had noticeably improved. He wrote about how he hated the man that had shot his dad, how he wished all kinds of things on him to make him suffer. There were the kinds of things in there that Bulma didn't like to think about coming from a kid. They were graphically violent and detailed. Then came a shock, all the more worse because it verified her suspicions.

**_'I wish I was still living with my dad. I hate living with my uncle; he's too strict and too cold. He scares me. I'm too scared to tell anyone this, but I have to write it down to get it out somehow._**

**_He has threatened to beat me to death with the broomstick if I tell anyone else, or if this gets out. I believe him._**

**_I came back at 10.30 last night, half an hour over curfew. He punched me hard for that, and later, when he got tired of kicking me, he got the belt out. It's wide and black and has a heavy silver buckle._**

**_I have a black eye, split lip and I can't lie on my back. I didn't want to bleed on the floor. The belt buckle caught me in the mouth, so that hurts. And I think he bruised a rib. I'm one big walking bruise. And I can't do anything about it. I'm scared that one day he'll put me in hospital._**

**_I don't know what to do.'_**

**_ _**

There were more entries like this one, all bleak, cataloguing injuries and detailing problems at school. Some of the entries were death threats to his uncle, some were suicide notes that he had been considering an option before he had remembered his father had told him to never give up. Some of the pages were carefully spotted with blood, boxed off with its origin written next to it.

She read the entry where Vegeta had knocked out the kid at school.

**_'I had another fight today. It was a bad one. Some kid twice my size called me a coward for one reason or the other and I saw red. Literally. I was that mad. Here I am, being beaten by someone twice my height just for being in the way, and there's this kid telling me I'm a coward. For what? Taking those hits like a man, instead of a boy? I lost it. I just went for him._**

**_I don't think he was expecting it, and neither was I. I've been practicing karate at school, partly to get away from home for a while, partly for protection. I kicked him in the head and he went down, unconscious. And the next thing I know, all the big kids wanna hang out with me. _**

**_I could use this. I get all the flak at home, why shouldn't I take advantage of this sudden power that I'm getting? One time where I can be in control I think. As well as the admiration (yeah right) of the older guys at school. _**

**_I got a broken arm from that fight. I got it by falling out of a tree (transl: my dear uncle hit me with a baseball bat.)_**

**_It's the third time I've been to the hospital in two months I think. He's been the cause every time, and still no one has noticed. That can be my only hope. I can't tell anyone.'_**

**__**

The loneliness and pain in the writings was almost unbearable for Bulma's soft heart, but as bad as this was, it soon got worse. The entry a few weeks after was scribbled hurriedly, and the paper was blotched with what were surmisably tearstains. 

**_'Oh Kami. And I thought things couldn't get worse. He's started drinking._**

**_His judgement gets impaired when he's drinking, believe me. Oh Kami. He broke my leg today. He just did it with his hands, just snapped it the wrong way at the kneecap. I wish I were a horse, so that someone would put me down. It Kills._**

**_I passed out when he did it, I keep fading out even now. I think I even threw up._**

**_He'll probably take me to the hospital tomorrow, he doesn't want anyone getting suspicious, or missing me. I must have at least three broken ribs and I think my nose is broken._**

**_Kami, kami, kami. Doesn't exist. There's no such person, I know, I've tried to beg him to make my uncle stop. I wish he'd just let my uncle kill me one of these days.'_**

**_ _**

The last entry in the journal appeared to have been written a few years after that one.

**_'I just re-found this thing. I think the first part is fiction, it certainly reads like it. That all seems so far away. I'll never get away from him now, I've tried. He reports me to the police as a missing person, I get found and then sent back to him._**

**_This is the last time I'm gonna write in this thing anyway. There's no point in it._**

**_There's no point in anything.'_**

**_ _**

With that the diary ended.

Bulma felt sick. She remembered the last few days, things that had happened, things Vegeta had said and it all clicked. His anxiety over being home late, his reluctance to go home, his skittishness at physical contact. The poorly explained sudden injuries now became understandable. She recalled the time when he hadn't come into school the day after saving them from the would-be mugger, how he had limped afterwards. And when he had given her the box and blamed his bloody features on an accident... she realised that the thump she had heard had been his body hitting the floor. Why hadn't she realised then ?!?!

It had been so obvious, it had always been obvious, but still nobody had ever noticed that the school bully was being bullied. Bulma thought long and hard and realised what she had to do.

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The next day at school, Bulma worried. Vegeta hadn't shown up. Her friends had noticed her distraction.

"Are you okay Bulma?"

She looked up from her essay to see Krillin in front of her, looking concerned.

Chichi and Goku sat down next to her.

"Yeah Bulma, you've been really quiet lately."

"You'll find out in English." She replied cryptically. "Hey Yamcha."

After the argument they had had, they got back together after Yamcha had begged and apologised, plying Bulma with flowers until she gave way.

"Hi Bulma." He bent over, kissed her hand and sat down. "Is that your English essay? Is that's what's kept you so pre-occupied lately? What's the matter; does that bad boy have some skeletons in the closet? Dirty secrets?"

Bulma felt annoyed as he teased her. *_I wish you could know* she thought._

"You'll have to find out with everyone else Yamcha."

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The English essays were about to be read. Bulma had despaired on Vegeta ever showing up when the door was shoved open and he entered, quietly for once. He apologised to Zarbon, shocking the man, and then sat down at his seat. Bulma noticed that he favoured his left side and that the cut lip had been joined by nasty looking bruises around his throat. He explained it away as the result of another fight.

After everyone's essays, it was Bulma's turn to read hers. She went to the front of the class. Everyone leaned forward, attentive and anxious to hear about the father of the school tyrant.

||**My essay is on Vegeta's dad, who was also named Vegeta. He was a proud man who believed in strength of character and who raised a fighter, not a quitter. He managed to do this on his own, after the death of his wife.**

**He was a soldier who had little time to spend with his son, but who still showed his love towards him by means of letters.||**

** **

**Vegeta blushed and squirmed in his seat.**

**||I couldn't form my own opinion of this elusive man, as he was tragically killed some years back.||**

** **

**Some of the more sympathetic students and those who had also lost parents shot him looks of pity, which only annoyed him. Bulma continued.**

**||Vegeta has instead been living with his uncle, from whom I could get no information except...||**

** **

**She paused, aware that she was teetering on an invisible line between following Vegeta's wishes and doing what was right. She crossed the boundary in a firm, clear and angry voice.**

**||Vegeta's uncle is a child beater.||**

** **

**There. She had said it. There was a collective gasp and some people turned to stare at Vegeta, who had gone white.**

**||I know that in most of our lives, everyone has been smacked once or twice for being naughty, but this 'man' uses baseball bats, belts and has put his own nephew in hospital on more than one occasion. He has threatened the boy with death if he tells anyone, and the only proof you need is sitting right there.||**

** **

**She pointed at Vegeta still frozen in his seat.**

**||He is being abused, it's as clear as the bruises round his throat, and regardless of my essay mark, I have decided that enough people have ignored this torture for long enough.||**

****

**Vegeta finally snapped out of his catatonic trance.**

"You can't **_do this!" He screamed at her._**

"Everybody..." Zarbon started, hands up to appease.

"SHUT UP!!!" Vegeta yelled back at him. It seemed that he had finally cracked. He whirled on Bulma. "You stupid idiot. Do you have ANY idea what you've done?" he got up and ran out of the classroom.

Bulma was going to follow him when Zarbon stopped her, looking her right in the eye.

"What's going on?"

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Vegeta ran home, wrenched the front door open, dashed up the stairs and began to pack. He had to get out of here and fast. That blue-haired baka had absolutely no right to...

He froze. He heard the creak of a foot on the stairs.

*_Kuso. Kuso, kuso, kuso. It was Thursday, wasn't it? He went out till late, didn't he?*_

_"**BRAT!!! WHERE THE HFIL ARE YOU?"**_

**It was Friday.******

Vegeta felt the usual sick fear in his stomach intensify. His uncle was furious.

**"Did you know I got a phone call just now? YOU TOLD SOMEONE DIDN'T YOU?"**

**Vegeta whimpered. The door flew open and the handle embedded itself into the wall. There stood his uncle, red eyed, blond haired, three times taller than Vegeta, ten times stronger and looking like the devil himself.**

"**Now I'm gonna go to JAIL because of you, you little RAT."**

He gripped Vegeta's arm tightly, wrenching muscles and bruising flesh as he dragged him over and grabbed his collar.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry." Vegeta repeated like a mantra, in a tiny little voice.

_"**I don't care." His uncle hissed, shaking him viciously like a terrier with a rat. ****"But you're gonna suffer for telling on me."**_

**Vegeta heard someone screaming as he was flung face-first into the solid wooden bedpost, and realised that it was him as he blacked out.**

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Bulma had explained everything to Zarbon and had shown him Vegeta's heartbreaking diary. She hadn't waited to see him phone Frieza, but had bolted as soon as the bell went, running towards Vegeta's house.

She was struck with a feeling of foreboding and ran faster

Goku realised where she must have gone and called Radditz.

"Radditz, we don't have time so just accept what I say. Bulma found out that Vegeta was being physically abused by his uncle, told the class, Vegeta ran off and she followed him. You know where he lives, can you go and make sure they're okay?"

Radditz was shocked to hear that all of his friend's- and Vegeta was his friend- injuries had been caused by Vegeta's own uncle, but he had seen the damage done more than once and sprinted away, taking the shortcut to Vegeta's house.

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Vegeta wearily came to after his uncle kicked him bodily down the stairs. He didn't have the breath left to scream any more, so he whined deep in his throat like a wounded animal instead. He began dragging himself upright, but a new pain in his hip stopped him. He looked up just in time to catch a foot below his chin, which made his mouth snap shut, biting his tongue and landing him on his back a few steps away.

He lay there, dizzy, as his uncle began smashing furniture. He looked out the window and glimpsed Radditz's shocked, pale face looking horrified at him. He grinned a bloody grin and then a scream found it's way out of his tortured throat as Frieza savagely broke his shin with a chair leg.

The pain overwhelmed him and he blacked out again.

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Radditz, having known a shortcut to Vegeta's house, arrived there before Bulma. He soon wished he hadn't arrived at all after peering through the window and seeing a broken and bleeding Vegeta grin at him before screaming and passing out as his uncle broke his leg with a piece of wood. The crack of bone breaking was audible even from there.

Radditz fled, shaking and shivering, to find help and bumped into Zarbon near the school.

"Come on!" He panted, tugging at Zarbon's sleeve. "Vegeta's uncle's gonna kill 'im!"

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Bulma had had to go through the graveyard to get to Vegeta's house, as she only knew the way from there. As a result, she arrived a few minutes after Radditz had. She heard the crack of bone, Vegeta's scream, his uncle cursing and ran into the kitchen through the unlocked back door. 

She skidded to a halt at the scene in front of her, before throwing up her hands and screaming, "Oh Kami, stop! He's had enough, _please, just STOP!!!"_

There was silence in the kitchen except for Vegeta's moans of pain. He half-fell, half-sat down the bottom of the wall. Blood ran to his chin from a large crack in his forehead, his face was a gory mask of blood, his leg was incorrectly bent at the knee and ankle, his arm hung loosely and he was covered in his own blood. There was also a large smear of blood down the wall that looked as if it had been caused by the back of his head. He looked unconscious and worryingly pale, his blood soaking his clothes. 

His uncle turned to her, hair dishevelled, eyes wild, shirt blood-spattered. He held a chair leg above his head, which was subsequently thrown carelessly into a wall and stuck there shuddering.

"**Get out of my house." He bellowed and backhanded the blue-haired teen across her cheek, sending her falling a few metres back, dazed.**

"**_Your as worthless a piece of filth as he is." he hissed at her._**

She gasped and scuttled back against the wall, trying to escape him. Now she knew how Vegeta must have felt. Trapped.

Frieza growled inhumanly at her and raised a hand to hit her again. He jerked suddenly, before falling forward, almost on top of her, and crashing to the ground hard. Bulma looked up, startled to see that her rescuer was a very faint looking Vegeta. He swayed where he stood and pitched over onto his hands and knees when she reached out to support him. He knelt there and vomited blood onto the floor, glistening and crimson, his life on the floor.

Bulma almost threw up herself at the sight, and then Vegeta turned away, sobbing piteously for a few minutes before finally collapsing, exposing another large smash in the back of his head.

Bulma felt dizzy at the sight of all the blood. She gulped air, desperately trying not to be sick. Bulma didn't move. Neither did Vegeta. Bulma looked at the blood that had spilled onto the floor, looked at the huge gashes on the still, pale body and realised that he was dead.

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As Zarbon and Radditz neared Vegeta's house, the longhaired teen felt a pang of protective anxiety. He had subconsciously begun to look upon Vegeta as another younger brother, and to find out that all those nasty accidents were the results of vicious beatings made him feel like he had failed as a friend and a role model.

He worried about Vegeta's welfare. The mangled and bloody body that had once been his best friend didn't look as if could have resisted any more blows from that long piece of heavy wood. Kami! How had that man ever been allowed to look after a child?

As soon as they reached the house they heard quiet weeping. Radditz worry increased, as he knew that Vegeta never liked to cry. They opened the door cautiously, and a hysterical Bulma flung herself at Radditz, who caught her reflexively.

"He killed him, he's dead, he's dead. Oh Radditz." He heard through her anguished sobs. His blood froze when he heard this. Vegeta couldn't be dead. No! He held the sobbing girl tightly and tried to hold back his own tears.

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Zarbon left his traumatised student in the capable hands of the elder Radditz and cautiously entered the house, not knowing what he would find. He spotted the flecks of fresh blood on the wall first, and then he saw the wrecked furniture, one chair of which was missing a leg. He found this lying on the floor near the unconscious but alive form of whom he assumed to be Vegeta's tyrannical Uncle Frieza.

Apart from a bump on his head, assumedly caused by the errant chair leg, and his unaware state, he was fine. He found himself regretting this and also resisting the urge to kick a few ribs when he discovered his most troubled student facedown in his own blood.

He turned the body over gently and grimaced at the amount of blood that spilt down his face. It slicked his chin red as well, showing that he had some internal bleeding.

He wondered how he could have let this sort of thing go on without noticing it at once. All the bruises and cuts and black eyes... he shook his head. That was all in the past.

Zarbon gently checked for a pulse then sighed.

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Radditz continued to hold the girl until her tears slowed, and then he brought out a hanky for her to wipe her face with. As she did so, he caught her chin and tilted her face up. 

"What happened?" he asked, instantly angry.

A large hand-shaped red mark spread across her face under her eye. She sniffled.

"Vegeta's uncle hit me."

Before Radditz could get the full story, he heard Zarbon call him from inside the house, sounding slightly panicked.

"Radditz? Call the police and an ambulance, please."

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Bulma had spent a few hours at the police station, explaining what she had seen, how she was involved and giving them the contents of the biscuit tin Vegeta had given her. She then went home and slept for at least twelve hours. The recent excitement had exhausted her and her face ached where Frieza had slapped her. She thought of Vegeta, pale and blood covered, and the ambulance men's grim faces, and cried herself to sleep.

She went to the hospital a few hours after she woke up, only to find Zarbon of all people, sitting in a chair next to the bed Vegeta lay in. The doctors had stopped the internal bleeding with a senzu solution and had fixed his breaks, but they couldn't cure him totally until he regained consciousness enough to eat a more solid senzu bean.

He slept in a coma, looking pale as if all of his blood had been drained away, and the multiple bruises flared like banners on his body. The doctors had said that he was one of the worst cases of child-abuse that they had seen in at least two years. 

Zarbon smiled weakly at her as she entered the doorway.

"The doctor's say he'll be okay and that he's stable for now, but they can't wake him up. He'll have to do that on his own and only if he wants to. Talking to him might speed the process though. They've put his uncle in prison and they said that they'd have to place him in a home once he gets through this."

Bulma was surprised to see Zarbon stroke a hand through Vegeta's upright spiky hair.

"Poor kid." He muttered. "And all this time we never knew. He never told anybody." He sounded regretful. "Radditz is here by the way. He's getting a coffee now. He seems to be beating himself up over it, as if he was responsible."

This didn't shock Bulma. She knew that Radditz was fiercely protective over his brother Goku, and now that he had 'adopted' Vegeta, it made sense for him to feel the same way over this boy too.

As Bulma looked over the deeply unconscious boy, she felt glad that his uncle would never be able to terrorise him again.

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**END PART ONE**

** **

**BEGIN INTERLUDE**


	2. Interlude

Behind Closed Doors- Interlude Normal Bern 2 2 2001-11-07T15:33:00Z 2001-11-07T15:33:00Z 3 1076 6136 PVD 51 12 7535 9.3821 0 6 pt 6 pt 0 

Behind Closed Doors- Interlude

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                Thank you to all the lovely people who reviewed chapter one, and I'm sorry that I'm too stupid to understand what you meant by what you said. I am alsop sorry that I made lots of you cry, but I'm glad you thought that this fic was worth your time J Don't be afraid to write long reviews people, critical commentary is accepted but praise strokes my ego J

**Rated: PG13**

**Disclaimer: I ****_STILL don't own diddly-sqwat, godditt?_**

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            Vegeta had woken up a few days after that eventful day, disorientated and quiet. No one had known what to do with him, and most people suggested that he be taken to a foster home. He had baulked at this idea, it being the very thing that he had wanted to avoid in the first place, and finally came alive enough to have a screaming fit over it.

            It was Radditz who had come up with the idea... he could be adopted by Bardock, Radditz and Goku's father. He had agreed, after reviewing the case and being vocally persuaded by Radditz, to adopt the young traumatised teen. He was a General in the army and was away sometimes, just as Vegeta's dad had been.

            Vegeta had changed since he had almost been beaten to death. He had returned to full health with the help of a solid senzu pill, but still bore some scars from past experiences. He had been offered councilling, but had flatly denied, refusing to talk to the psychologist at all. She had instead told his new family to keep a careful eye on him, as suffering like that for an extended period of time would cause some psychological damage.

            And so, the withdrawn and unresponsive Vegeta became part of the Son family.

            Goku had been thrilled to learn that Vegeta would be becoming his new brother. 

            "It'll be like having a twin." He had babbled excitedly to Radditz. "Someone related to me and my own age in the same class. It'll be great. We can do all kinds of things together."

            He was unfortunately dissapointed.

            His 'new brother' was nothing like the Vegeta that he had known before. He was withdrawn, to the point that he would need to be shook for him to realise you were talking to him sometimes. Except for the tantrum over where he was going to live, he hadn't spoken at all. He was unsociable and when he did sit with the rest of the family, he sat next to Radditz, away from Bardock if he was there. He slept in the spare bedroom on his own and spent much of his time in there, looking out the window. 

            It was here that he had the first nightmare. It had been about three in the morning when Radditz had heard screaming. Goku could sleep through a power drill outside his room and Bardock was away again, so he was the only person in the house to hear. He realised what it's source was, and then ran into Vegeta's bedroom, turning on the light and closing the door before moving to the bed. Vegeta, dressed in sweatpants and one of Radditz's old T-shirts which hung off him, was struggling among his covers and screamed again.

            Radditz grabbed the smaller teen and rocked him, shushing him as he used to do to Goku when he awoke crying as a young child.

            Vegeta woke up with a start, stiffened slightly before he realised where he was and then was quiet. He uttered no sob and his eyes were dry, and Radditz, who had expected tears, was surprised.

            Although his young brother didn't cry, he didn't resist the comforting rocking and the feelings of warm security that he hadn't experienced since he was a baby. He fell asleep there, but whimpered unconciously when Radditz tried to leave. The morning came and found Radditz protectively hugging Vegeta who slept in his arms, while Radditz was propped against the wall.

            The nightmares went on for weeks, but seemed to lessen after they bought him a dreamcatcher. He now slept in his bed in Radditz's room, as Radditz was always the one to wake him from the unescapable torment his mind kept putting him through.

            Vegeta never let Bardock come anywhere near him. He watched the man who had adopted him with wary eyes, never turning his back and tensing up when in his presence. Bardock was upset at this, but was willing to let Vegeta get to know him a bit more, and from there, maybe to trusting him.

            They were all lucky that it was the summer holidays, as they didn't have to worry about school or school work. Bulma had tried to visit in numerous times, but Radditz hadn't allowed her due to the psychologists recommendation of having as few visitors as possible.

            Radditz was lying on his stomach with his Discman on, reading a magazine when Vegeta entered, on quiet cat-feet as was his habit.

                He was shocked when Vegeta spoke quietly, his voice hoarse from disuse and the screaming he had put it through recently.

            "Radditz?"

            He jumped and turned, giving Vegeta his full attention.

            "Is Bulma okay?"

            Bulma had had a beautifully coloured bruise on her cheek for a while, but it dissapeared after a while, leaving her no injuries except some slight shock. She too had had nightmares about blood and Frieza bearing down on her with a chair-leg, but these had passed.

            "Yeah 'Geta." he said. "She's fine."

            Vegeta nodded then crumpled to the floor, crying.

            Radditz stared, wide-eyed. Vegeta hadn't cried since the incident. Not even once. As he knelt down to hold the slight body through the shuddering sobs that racked it, he felt a sense of gladness. Vegeta was finally responding.

            It was an up-hill ride from there. Although he struggled, and although it was difficult to see, Vegeta began talking about what had happened. This, the psychologist said, was a good sign. He was coming to terms with it, and had probably been thinking it over in his mind all that time. The nightmares started up again, worse than before now that he was forcing himself to re-live it. He began to go to bed later and later, in the hopes that he wouldn be too tired to dream, but it only served to make him more tired during the day. He began to eat less and dark circles appeared under his eyes. He looked exhausted and felt tired the whole time.

            When he had started talking about what had happened, he was allowed to have visitors. One of the first was Bulma, who was shocked at his appearance on their first meeting.

            "Hey Vegeta." she said softly.

            He nodded back.

            She didn't know what to say next. She could see that he wasn't okay and asking him if he was alright didn't seem appropriate at the time. They sat in silence for a while before Vegeta spoke.

            "I'm sorry."

            She looked up, surprised, and saw those once intense burning coals of eyes flat and dead.

            "For what?" she asked, avoiding his gaze.

            "For involving you. For making you have to experience that. I'm sorry for dragging you into it."

            Bulma knew that this was costing the little pride he had left.

            "It wasn't you. I'm the one who stuck my nose in."

            "I'm glad you did." Vegeta said.

            They talked about nonsensical things for the rest of the day, avoiding the previous subject until Radditz came in and told Bulma that it was getting dark.

            "I'll see you round Vegeta." she smiled at him.

            He nodded back at her and, when she had left, closed the door, turned off the light, and sat in silence in the dark.

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**END INTERLUDE**

**BEGIN PART TWO**


	3. Chapter Two

Behind Closed Doors-Part Two

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                I am so sorry that this chapter is disgustingly late but I have an excuse. A while ago, after moving the guts of my old comp into a new case, my hard drive was distressingly totally wiped. After screaming ARGHHH! ARGHHH! ARGHHH! A coupla times, I got kinda depressed about how I'd lost ALL my original work (wahhhhhhhh) and most of my fanfics. So, have a bit of pity, I tried to get this out as quick as I could.

                I'm also glad that you beautiful reviewing people (thank you) found this thing so moving. Don't worry about saying it made you cry (tho I don't understand why… could someone fill me in there plz?) For madwoman, who wanted to know, the androids will prolly be in this (incl. 17) as well as Piccolo. Thanks to RenegadePheonix and medea for drawing my attention to the fact that Vegeta was leery about being round Bardock… you guys gave me inspirationJ

I don't think that this part is gonna be as long as the first part… I think that that part was a fluke.

                Sorry if it's a bit flaky, I repicked it up and it's less structured than the other part. I'm writing off the top of my head, tell me if this is annoying or good, coz I don't know. J Tanks.

**Rating: R (I think)**

**Warning: Mentions of child-abuse and some self-harm**

**Disclaimer: ** I don't own anyone offa DBZ, but then you all know that, don't you.

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It was a couple of weeks after Vegeta had met with Bulma and a new school term was due to start.

He had spent a long time thinking, mainly philosophising about life and his part in it. Unknown to him, he had developed very low self-esteem from his time with uncle, and couldn't escape the feelings of guilt for the injury that Frieza had dealt Bulma, even though he had nothing to do with it. He felt bad for dragging Bulma into his life in the first place, and couldn't think about her without inwardly cringing. If he hadn't agreed to the stupid assignment in the first place, or if he had asked for another partner, or hadn't shown up, or hadn't handed her the box, or had burnt that book when he had found it, or… or, or, or. If only. He had done none of those things, and, as a result had shown the blue-haired girl a glimpse of hell. She had been struck and she knew now what it was like to have your trust in an adult, your faith in those who shouldn't harm you, broken.

 He felt ashamed of the way he treated Bardock, but he couldn't help the feelings of submission, anxiety and suspicion that overwhelmed him whenever his adopted parent was near. He would see the older man's shadow out of the corner of his eye, and whip round fast, shrinking back slightly. He knew that Bardock wasn't the same as his uncle, that he wouldn't turn round on him for no reason as his uncle had done… but some things were too deeply ingrained into him to ignore, and one of these was his mistrust of the adults around him. So, he continued to watch his new dad with wary eyes and a tense posture, continued to hold his breath when the man passed and continued to leave the room as silently and inconspicuously as possible when he was settled there.

Bardock wouldn't stop trying though. He was determined that no matter how long it took, Vegeta would eventually trust him. Then, maybe, he could actually comfort his new son as Radditz did and even make the boy learn that people like his uncle were not as common as he thought they were.

Goku tried to build on becoming friends with his new brother, but it wasn't working. Vegeta seemed distant towards him, only saying what had to be said and always in as few words as possible. In fact he acted like this to almost everyone excluding Radditz, who had become the only person Vegeta would actually talk to in anything other than monosyllables. His relationship with Bulma stayed as it had been ever since their talk in his room. She would come visit occasionally and he would let her, both of them talking about nothing for long stretches of time. Bulma briefed him on what was going on in the outside world but he wasn't really interested to know that Krillin had had no luck with any girls over the holidays, or that Chichi's single dad now had a fiancé or that Bulma had broken up for the last time with Yamcha. 

He still looked bad, pale and dark eyed from inconsistent and broken sleep, thin from not eating and then something more, a horrible dark emptiness inside him that only seemed to be visible to the mind's eye, but was nonetheless there. His bruises had healed nicely, his broken bones had been fixed but he had collected some scars from incident.

He had been acting miserable and depressed ever since coming out of hospital, although talking to Radditz was helping a lot. But he didn't have the mind-set to stay like that for long. In the future, he was still unable to decide whether or not the next events had been helpful or not.

Vegeta stood in the bathroom looking unseeingly into the mirror at himself. He saw the scar that had formed, a nasty streak on the right side of his forehead, studying it with blank eyes. He saw the bruises under those eyes and the paleness of his skin against his dark hair. 

He leaned closer into the mirror until his nose touched the glass. He watched as the reflection misted from his breath, and the coolness of the glass began to warm from his heat. He had been living in a dream world the past few months, coming to terms with what had happened to him, realising that he was finally away from the man who had been his uncle. Whom he had disowned a thousand times over and who was finally out of his life. He felt as if his mind was clouded in fog, like he wasn't thinking straight and floating through this world. He wondered sometimes, when he lay in bed at night willing the nightmares to stay away, if he had died in that dark house, if he was actually a ghost wandering the mortal world and annoying the residents. He forgot this during the day, storing it away so that he could run on autopilot, not back to normal but as good as could be expected considering. But at night… there was nothing more powerful than the irrational imaginings of his own mind. He considered all sorts of scenarios. The return of his uncle, his rejection from his new family, whether it would have been better if he had died long before this, when he was still innocent and didn't fear the shadow of his new father.

He realised that he had started crying silently, some of the tears dripping to the end of his nose and running down the glass. He stood back and stared harder as the droplet he was focused on ran to the bottom and caught on the almost non-existent ledge that was there. It stopped. More drops ran to join it, making it heavier, increasing its weight until the ledge could hold it no more and it fell to splash on the shelf below. 

Vegeta looked back up at his reflection and finally saw. Saw what he had become, how he was still allowing his uncle to control his life, how living this dream-like existence wasn't living at all… how he was letting his dead father down.

He felt clarity, purity run through him and shook, fists clenched. His mind wasn't foggy anymore. A light had shone through and it burned away everything until everything he saw was clearer than it had been before. He gritted his teeth, not noticing the new flames that glittered hellishly in his expression, pulled back his arm and punched the mirror.

And the energy in him leapt and he entered a new state of mind.

Regardless of the fact that he had his Discman on and turned right up, Radditz still heard the almighty smash from the bathroom. It was followed almost immediately by a scream, then another smash. He leapt off the bed; Discman falling to the floor in his panic to get to the bathroom and find out what the hell was going on. He heard Goku running up the stairs as well, and hurled himself down the corridor to get there first. He slammed into the locked door, once, twice, three times and it broke open, the little bolt being no match for desperate strength.

He ran into the wall and turned, seeing in fear that his newly adopted sibling had apparently gone mad.

He was screaming curses as he punched into the already broken mirror, the blood from his lacerated hands flying sickly over everything, spattering the bathroom in hellish crimson rain.

Alarmed, Radditz told Goku to go downstairs and phone their dad. He turned to the airing cupboard and yanked a towel out, then pounced on Vegeta, wrapping his arms in it and pulling them both down to the silver covered floor. Vegeta bucked and kicked like a wild animal, screaming all the while at Radditz to 'Get the hell off me, lemmego, get off me!'

Radditz refused to take this and dragged Vegeta, still struggling, out of the way of the mirror's shards. Vegeta's flailing fist caught Radditz in the chin and Radditz decided that things were getting out of hand. Silently asking Vegeta to forgive him, he brought back his hand and slapped the smaller boy hard across the face.

He felt some of the tension in the boy's body drain out, saw as he looked bleakly at the mess he had made and then felt the shudders as shock got to him

.

Vegeta choked and felt the pure rage that had possessed and envelop him a minute ago drain away. He looked round from his restraints in the towel saw the blood and glass shining on the floor. He gazed at it mesmerised as it glimmered wetly, seeming fantastical and unreal. He then realised that he was trembling hard in Radditz's arms, the adrenaline still humming in his veins. He felt the fury he had just realised smouldering in the pit of his stomach. He looked up at Radditz and fought to hold back his tears. He was tired of crying.

Radditz made soothing shushing noises to him and rocked them both slightly, keeping a tight grip on his captive. He remembered the animalistic anger on Vegeta's face as he broke the mirrors fragments. It had scared him.

He pulled one of Vegeta's shredded fists to his face and saw the glass splinters in it. He almost threw up at the sight. He looked down to see that the smaller boy had fainted, and felt the worry increase. He decided to wait there until his dad came back, feeling too young for the grief and fear that his new brother had instilled in him and trying to ignore the painful twist that he felt growing in his stomach.

Vegeta had had enough. He had broken into a new level of emotions, had seen the light so to speak and had caused trouble for his new family all in the space of a few minutes. As the pain from his hands suddenly registered, and as the trembling in his body stilled to a quivering, Vegeta's consciousness gave up on trying to handle everything at once and opted instead to turn off for a while.

Nyark. That seemed pretty… abstract. Don't worry; I will post the next chapter up soon, with more stuff going on and hopefully a jump forward in the timeline. Sure, the angst here is all well and good, but I need some fresh stuff. More charas will be introduced and I promise, there will be a bit more interaction from the others. Introspect is all well and good, but we need vegetables with our gravy. Gives self an odd look


End file.
